Contact: Linda Bloom·(212) 870-3803·New York

Two containers of emergency supplies, shipped by the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR), are expected to reach Sierra Leone by mid-April.

The 32 tons of goods left port March 19, according to Bob Osgood of UMCOR's Depot in Baldwin, La. Included were one ton of blankets, nearly 11,000 health kits, three-quarters of a million servings of dehydrated potatoes, six tons of emergency food ration bars, and "homecoming kits" containing such items as household linens and cooking utensils for displaced families.

The Rev. Paul Dirdak, UMCOR's chief executive, also said that the agency has approved two grants of $45,000 each to be used for trauma, healing and counseling in the war-torn African country. One grant will be managed by the United Methodist Sierra Leone Annual Conference and the other grant by the Sierra Leone Council of Churches.

In January, the citizens of Freetown were besieged as the latest round of fighting in a long-running civil war took to the streets of the capital. Since then, an uneasy ceasefire has existed.

United Methodist Bishop Joseph Humper, who remains in the country, and the Rev. D.H. Caulker, pastor of King Memorial United Methodist Church in Freetown, have been among the leaders of an interfaith effort to assist the peace process in Sierra Leone.

On Feb. 9, the Interreligious Council of Sierra Leone issued a public statement expressing its "deep concern over the rebel activities of the recent past resulting in the massive destruction of life and property, and the indescribable atrocities meted to the citizenry in the capital city of Freetown and the country at large."

The council said it "encourages all parties concerned: the government of Alhaji Dr. Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, the RUF (Revolutionary United Front), the former AFRC and civil society groups, and indeed all Sierra Leoneans, to be committed towards the full realization of lasting peace in Sierra Leone."

The council has played a critical role encouraging government dialogue with the rebels, according to the Rev. Wendy Pomeroy, conflict transformation program director for the World Conference on Religion and Peace.

In addition to developing the public statement, it has held press conferences and met with Sierra Leone's president and other government officials, traditional leaders and United Nations officials. The council also is working through the World Conference on Religion and Peace to see if a northern European government could act as a third-party negotiator for a dialogue.

Meanwhile, on March 11, the U.N. Security Council extended its observer mission in Sierra Leone until June 13. Resolution 1231 (1999) encouraged the U.N. Secretary-General, through his special representative for Sierra Leone, Francis Okelo, to facilitate dialogue to peacefully resolve the conflict there and restore lasting peace and stability.

March 23, 1999

Donations for emergency relief efforts in Sierra Leone can be designated to UMCOR Advance No. 181205-1, earmarked "Sierra Leone Emergency." Checks can be placed in church collection plates or mailed to UMCOR at 475 Riverside Dr., Room 330, New York, NY 10115.